Do you ever have those projects that just seem so big you don’t even know where to begin? Maybe it’s that closet that you want to clean out and reorganize. Or the vegetable garden you’ve wanted to start for years. It could even be that you want to go back to school to finish that degree, or finish writing that book, or start that business.

You might even consider your “project” more of a dream.

That’s where I’ve been for… years. In full transparency, I kept my photography business somewhat hidden and always “on the side” because I just didn’t even know where to begin. I had big ideas, but I spent my time looking left and right trying to see how everyone else was doing it – and comparing my dreams, my plans, and ultimately myself to them. It paralyzed me. “Paralysis of analysis.”

Finally, while I was fasting with my church in January 2018, I decided to go for it. I was going to finally start acting on my ideas instead of keeping them to myself in case they didn’t work out. It took me a lot longer than I originally planned to get the ball rolling (#toddlerlife), but the ball is rolling now! And it’s so exciting.

You may be wondering why I’m talking about my dream of establishing my business when I’m sharing a family session. Well, let me fill you in.

I recently shot the Layton family – Thomas, Danielle, and Luke. They are SO precious. Danielle and I went to high school together, but she is younger than me and I’m not sure we ever knew each other more than just passing before. But thanks to the magic of the internet, we’ve been Facebook friends for quite some time now, and I’ve watched her blossom as a wife and mom from afar.

During their session, I found out that Danielle and Thomas have an eerily similar story to my husband and me! I met my husband in a small group at church. She met her husband in a small group at church. We got married five years ago. They got married five years ago. We have a little boy. They have a little boy. It was so fun to find out so many similarities!

And guess what – Danielle also has her own business. Danielle is so open and transparent. She regularly puts herself out there, empowering other women to be their best selves and to go after their dreams. She has a passion for her business, and she’s great at it! I love seeing all of her updates, Facebook Lives, and fashion finds.

Being an entrepreneur is hard. Putting yourself out there is HARD. Do you see where I’m going with this? It’s something I am actively working at, and I noticed that Danielle does it so well. She did for me what I hope I’m able to do for other women – inspire women to pursue their passion authentically just by doing that myself.

If you have a dream you want to pursue, I want to encourage you to just go for it. You never know who you might be motivating to pursue their own dreams!